No Me for the Wii (for Kate)

Filled with glee
She came home to see
Her lad with a book
Reading A B C's

No more T.V.!
She thought wistfully
As her boy flipped the pages
With quiet intensity.

But then entered hubby
And he was quite merry
He unpacked and set up
What looked like a monstrosity

'My darling wifey,'
He mentioned with revelry
'Your sister dropped off a great game
Will you play with me?'

She stared at the Wii
Asking quite cautiously
'Did you see that your son
Is beginning to read?'

Non plussed was the hubby
As he fussed with the packaging
'The first thing you need to do
Is create a 'me' for your 'Wii';

'A 'me' for a 'Wii'?'
She asked a bit shrilly
'Why would I want to create
A me for a Wii?'

'I have a me for the Wii
Just wait 'til you see
How much fun we'll all have
Interacting with the T.V.'

She noted dejectedly
That her son threw down the A B C's
And seemed transfixed by this gadget
That was being played by his daddy.

'I will not create a new Me'
She stated with unhidden hostility.
'I will not play with this new fangled gizmo
I will not create a new me for the Wii.

Let me speak clearly
So that you can hear me truely.
I have absolutely no interest in playing this game
And I will not be making a me for this Wii.

I must state emphatically
Although I love you dearly
We differ in ways as good couples do
So I will not be making a 'me' for this Wii

Looking dejectedly
Feeling defeat
She watched as her son
Left a book by her feet

But then quite excitedly
He picked up his ABC's
And flipped through the pages
And turned to his mommy.

As time goes on inevitably
The boy and his daddy
Interact and enjoy the games
As they play with their 'me's' and the Wii

But what warms her heart magically
When her son picks up his ABC's
And he finds the warm spot on the couch and asks,
'Mommy will you read with me?'

Portrait of a Girl

My daughter is special. She speaks in terms of hearts and spirits and love. She is intelligent, insightful and wise beyond her years. She is a girl who embraces being a girl. I want her to hold on to that. When I was her age I thought girls were pretty useless. I liked hanging with boys. I understood boys. Girls made no sense to me. When playing games on the school ground -- boys against the girls -- I always played for the boys team. My daughter's love of pink, fashion, teeny bopper television is not part of my own experience but, through her, I am coming to understand not only her but myself.


The other day we watched an episode of 'The Jonas Brothers.' She really wanted to watch it and said she loved it. I am not a fan of the Disney channel or the tweeny pop aesthetic that proliferates its airwaves. Everyone is different though and I love the chance to snuggle with her on the couch. I asked her what it was about the show that she liked. She laughed and was embarrassed. She's young. I wondered if she was already getting caught up in 'crush' land and teen idol worship. (Can't be! I thought. Not yet please? She's not quite 8 years old.) I asked her if she thought the boys were cute. Her answer was immediate and honest. 'No!' She paused and explained. 'I like the colours mommy.' I continued watching. The colours used are bright and vibrant. Each scene has a different palette. It's actually quite cool to watch the show in terms of colour. She pointed out different shades at work and how the character's outfits always seemed to work with the background walls. 'The acting is pretty good too mommy.' Hmmmm. I disagreed with her on that point but noted that it wasn't worse then 90% of the dreck passed off as evening adult programming.

My daughter once mentioned that she wanted to be an artist when she grew up. She then said that she already was an artist. I love seeing the world through her eyes; the eyes of an unapologetic girl who embraces the beauty of the world around her.

I want to tell her to remain free of guilt. I want to let her know that it's ok to cry and that showing emotion is not a sign of weakness. I want her to be able to love freely. I want to tell her that although there will be many folk who will try to label her, pin her down and make her feel in someway wanting that she should just shrug it off and continue to just be. I want her to feel the strength of her grandmothers within her. I want her to never feel threatened by forces beyond her control. I want her never to feel threatened period.

The strength that she shows me each day astounds me. Her insight teaches me. Her love centres me. Her spirit guides me.

My Left Needs a Break (before it breaks)

Just over a week ago I went to class early in order to run through some lock and rubber guard techniques. Got my left calf squeezed pretty tight and by the end of the class I was limping a wee bit. No biggie I thought. Working the techniques at a seminar 2 weeks ago did a number on my right calf but the soreness went away after a couple days. I could feel a bruise forming but thought nothing of it.

Saturday I went to class a bit worse for wear. I had enjoyed a lovely evening with a gf the night before but I indulged in a few too many pints. We were set to call it a night but then this Irish dude started chatting and bought another round. Blame the Irish indeed. I survived the class. Actually, by the time class came around in the afternoon I was no longer feeling ill -- just tired. The kidlings had gymnastics in the morning and I had a short shift at the theatre. Dropped the kids off, rushed to work, came back to pick up the girl, we went for a quiet hot chocolate, went to get the boy and got home for a short nap. My daughter made lunch for us -- one of the best sandwiches I have ever had. Very nice to feel pampered.

Oh this is a bit of a ramble but I want to mention the hot chocolate that my girl and I had. We went to a place called 'Truffle Treasures' and asked for hot chocolate. We were asked what type we would want. Type? There was a ginormous list! Ok. I chose Aztec (with chili spices) and the girl chose Peppermint. Then we were asked if we wanted dark, milk or white chocolate. Ok. The drinks were fantastic but I never realized that hot chocolate had become as diverse (and expensive) as coffees. Thing is, I'll probably never want to go back to the plain old hot chocolate served in styrofoam cups. Sigh.

Class on Saturday went well. Lot's of people and not too much stress. That evening, however, my calf started to swell and turn a garish purple. Sunday came and the calf got bigger. I figured it was time to bite the bullet and have it checked out by a medical pro. Monday morning I called my supervisor and informed him that I was going to go to emerg. He figured it was a good idea. I got the kids ready for school, sent them on their way and got ready to head out myself. I then remembered that there was work on stage that had to be done before a new screen was installed. I called my supervisor and told him I was going into work first to get job done.

Funny. I was climbing up and down the ladder humping lights and my supervisor was chatting to a contractor saying 'she'll finish these lights, the two of us will move the gear around in the booth and then I'll send her to the hospital.' Job dedication? Stubborn pride? Anyway, I got er done and went to emerg. It turned out to be a very pleasant 6 hour stay. I had a good book, they powers that be assured me that I would be done before having to be home to meet the kidlings and time passed in a restful almost serene manner.

Turns out I did not have any clotting (although I'm to check with my GP early next week to make sure all is still well). I had, however, blown a couple blood vessels which made the leg swell and turn a ghastly shade of dark purply green.

I went to class on Tuesday wearing a tensor bandage. I can do the aikido but am staying away from the jiu jitsu for a couple weeks (Dr. says a month and a half for the healing -- we'll see). Class went well until I turned over on my left ankle and hurt the left side of my neck with a bad fall.

So now I have a bruised leg, bruised/sprained ankle, bruised toe and stiff neck all on my left side.

Guess the Christmas break has come at a good time.